The Feed Leaders Committee of South Korea (FLC) bought 132,000 metric tonnes of animal feed corn from a worldwide source in an international auction on Tuesday, European traders reported.

Two consignments were purchased, exceeding the 69,000 tonnes originally requested in the tender for arrival in South Korea in November.

They said that a consignment of 67,000 tonnes was purchased from the trading house Mitsui for an estimated cost and freight price of $233.80 per ton plus a $1.25 surcharge per ton for port unloading.

They said that a second consignment of 65,000 tons was purchased from the trading house Posco for an estimated price of $234.05 per ton, cost and freight plus $1.00 extra per ton to cover additional port unloading.

The traders said that Asian buyers were sparked by the fact that U.S. Corn futures had hit a two-week low on Monday due to expectations of an abundant harvest in the United States. Taiwan's MFIG buying group also announced an international tender on Tuesday to purchase up to 65,000 tonnes of corn that would close on Wednesday.

The FLC has purchased two consignments for delivery in South Korea on or around November 20, with the same shipping periods. This is slightly different from the original tender request.

The purchase was shipped between October 1 and 31 if it came from the U.S. Pacific Northwest Coast, between September 12 and 11 if it came from the U.S. Gulf coast, or between September 7 to 6 if the product was from South America, or between September 22-October 21, if the product was from South Africa.

The reports reflect the assessments of traders. Further estimates on prices and volume are possible in the future. (Reporting and editing by Kirby Donovan, Michael Hogan)

(source: Reuters)